I offer many thanks to Barb who spends a lot of her precious and dwindling spare time correcting my atrocious grammar and spelling. Thanks, too, for the suggestions and input, Barb.

j.dragoness@mindspring.com

Part 4 (Conclusion)

Eyes closed, Sterling threw her head back and tried to think. 'What in the hell just happened here? I must be dreaming.' She reached for the telephone and dialed two digits before replacing it on the receiver. It had suddenly occurred to the lawyer that her phones were tapped. Her computer had probably been compromised, too. Deciding the calls could wait, Sterling moved to her desk and sat down in the chair that Anna Bertilini had so recently vacated. She pressed her fingers to her temples where a dull throbbing had begun.

Pulling a sheet of heavy stationery from her desk drawer, Sterling began a letter, a very important letter to Samantha.

You have encouraged me to let go of my past, and I honestly have made tremendous strides in that direction, until now. I have found out tonight that someone I knew long ago is trying to hurt us. More specifically, they are threatening to hurt you if I continue to see you. The why's and the how's are too complex to go into now, but believe me, this is a serious threat, coming from a seriously sick individual.

I considered keeping the truth from you Sam, but my heart wouldn't let me. I don't want to scare you with all of this. I only want you to know that I would not walk away if there was any other choice left to me. I realize it is a very poor time to say so, but I love you. In the parallel world that I used to inhabit, that's a dangerous liability.

I'm making no sense, but I'm still reeling from the blow of losing you. The hardest part is realizing that my motivation for seeking decency is the very thing that will drive me back into the blackest corner of my past. Don't worry. I am still a survivor, Sam.

You may hear things about me from time to time. Believe them and try to get on with your life. I say again what I should have been whispering in your ear over and over again. I love you with all that I am.

Sterling

The lawyer sealed the note in an envelope and placed it inside a bubble mailer with instructions for Charlie to send it to Peter. Sterling wanted no traceable tie from herself to Samantha. She grabbed the mailer and pulled her keys from her desk drawer. During the short drive to the post office, Sterling concentrated on the road, not trusting herself to think quite yet. Once the bulky envelope had been dropped down a chute inside the building, Sterling assumed her message to Sam would be delivered unmolested and could breath again.

Sterling gripped the steering wheel of her stationary BMW. She had parallel parked in front of a line of retail shops in Decatur two hours previously. The sky was beginning to lighten as she recapped her plan of action and checked it for flaws. It was risky on many levels, but a plan that would work, she believed. Her mind made up; she turned the key on the steering column and started her journey.

Sam had waited all evening for Sterling's call. It never came nor did she call the next morning. Finally, the realtor caved in and called the law office. She was informed that Ms. Hayes was in court at the moment. Sam left a message but the unfamiliar voice reported that Sterling was leaving town on business by day's end and might not pick up her messages for several days.

Puzzled, Sam hung up the phone. 'Why didn't Sally answer the phone? She always picks up Sterling's private line.' Cold crept slowly up her spine. Something was wrong. 'I need to drop all of this cloak and dagger stuff. She's just very busy. After all, the fire, the new house and her practice all require her attention. She'll call when she can.'

Sterling had showered and changed before heading back to her office. Stopping at a phone booth, she dropped some change in and waited for Charlie to come on the line. The detective was obviously groggy from sleep. Sterling rattled off instructions for several minutes before allowing him to speak. "You are getting all of this, aren't you? I can't call you from the office until you arrange for a sweep. Even then it's probably best if I move around some. Have your electronic whiz check the old house and the new one, too. Be sure that bodyguard understands that he has to maintain a discreet distance. I don't want Sam to know anyone is watching her."

"I want you to contact an old friend of mine. His name is Samson." Sterling gave Charlie the numbers he would need and told him to ask for anything Samson could uncover regarding Anna's takeover of the Bertilini family business. Next, she placed a call to her secretary's voice mailbox and left instructions for Sally to meet her at a diner within walking distance of the office. She was sitting in the corner booth drinking coffee when the older woman spotted her.

Once Sally had been seated and served coffee, too Sterling began her explanation of the clandestine meeting. "I don't have time to go into everything Sally, but I've got a serious problem. I'm fairly certain that someone has bugged the office, so I couldn't talk to you there." The lawyer explained some of her needs without going into the 'why' of the situation. Sterling had wrestled with herself over how much information she should impart to the woman across the table. Sally was trustworthy without a doubt, but involving her could place her in danger, too. The attorney didn't want to risk that for the time being.

"I'll be putting the canvases into storage for now and moving what little furniture that actually belongs to me into the new house as soon as the papers are signed. I need to push my caseload hard and try to clear up most of the ones I'm working on personally. Anything new coming in, I will try to assign."

Sally watched her boss' eyes, hoping to achieve some glimmer of understanding. Sterling's features changed noticeably as she issued her next instructions. "I've disassociated myself with Ms. Hilliard. Suffice it to say that we have nothing further to communicate about at this point. I don't want her calls put through. In a few days, I imagine they will stop altogether." The secretary made no comment, but she was saddened immeasurably by the news.

"What shall I tell her as to your whereabouts?" Sally would never have asked this question under normal circumstances. She'd have made up some viable story to tell. The fact that she had posed it made Sterling aware that her secretary must like Sam very much.

"You aren't much of a liar Sally." Sterling smiled for the first time. "I planned on having someone else answer my personal line for a few days. They can tell her that I'm leaving town on business, some emergency or another." The attorney reached into her pocket and tossed some folded bills onto the tabletop to pay for their coffee. "There will be some security people sweeping the office regularly. Charlie will clear everything with you. No one is to be left unattended there. If you don't recognize the technician, you don't let them in, just call me."

Sally had been nodding continuously. "Any questions?" Sterling waited for her secretary to respond.

She had many, many questions, but none that it was her right to ask. Sally shook her head again. "OK. I'll see you in the office shortly." She reached out and placed her hand lightly on Sally's arm, stopping her. "I know this makes no sense, but I appreciate your help and your trust. Everything will work out, I assure you." Sally smiled her slow, special smile that was reserved for the rare occasion when she allowed herself to be less than professional with her boss.

"I have no doubts," she said softly. Those words spoke volumes to Sterling and brought tears to her eyes. Until now, she had allowed nothing to evoke the bubbling emotions in her to the surface. The tall woman nodded and followed Sally out of the establishment.

Samson asked a lot of questions when he was contacted. He ultimately insisted that Sterling call him directly, needing to know for certain that she was unharmed. No one was to know about Anna's visit except the detective and Sterling. The attorney placed the necessary call.

"What is this all about?" Samson was irritated. He hated the mysterious way in which he had been approached for his help.

"Sorry. I'm pretty sure someone's watching and I'm moving around a lot." Tonight she was staying in a hotel on the fringes of the city. "Did Charlie tell you what I need?"

"Hell yes, but I want to know why the sudden interest in that family? Please don't tell me that you're getting involved with the Bertilinis again, Sterling." The pain in his voice touched her deeply.

"Nothing like that. I'm trying like hell to get uninvolved with that family. I just need some information to figure out how to go about it." Over twenty minutes of her protests, Samson insisted that he would collect what he could and deliver it to her personally within a week. Sterling hung up the phone knowing that she would have to tell him everything when he arrived, or she couldn't expect him to help her.

Checking her watch, Sterling chastised herself for being awake at a late hour. Knowing that she had a court appearance the following morning, she buried her head in the flat hotel pillow and tried to relax. She hadn't slept much since Anna's visit and there didn't seem to be any help for it.

The image of glistening green eyes formed in her mind's eye. She groaned at the sensory assault that accompanied the picture. 'How on earth am I going to do what I have to do to her? What would I give to be holding her right now instead of this pillow?' Nothing she could think of in association with Samantha brought her anything but heartache, so she shifted her train of thought to the unfinished details of a plan she was formulating. It was going to be a long night.

"Councilor! Have you any questions for this witness?" The judge was addressing her. Her assistant on the case nudged her arm, bringing her mind into the courtroom.

"Sorry, your honor. I would like to hear that last statement again, please." The court reporter read the words of testimony back to her and she automatically responded in full attorney mode. Sterling stood slowly, unbuttoning her jacket as she approached the witness stand. The sleaze that waited there for her was obviously lying and more obviously unconcerned with anything except eyeing her breasts. The attorney deliberately stretched to her full height, bringing them close to eye level for his perusal.

'You slime. As if I would ever let you lay a finger on me.' His concentration on her caused him to fumble his rehearsed testimony. Sterling managed to catch him in one lie, which led to another. Before he stepped down off the stand, his character had been assassinated.

When the judge called for a lunch break, Sterling went rapidly to the bank of public phones at the end of the marble hallway. Punching numbers, hurriedly, she was relieved to find Sally still at her desk. "I was afraid you would be at lunch. Anything from Charlie, yet?" She listened while here eyes scanned the people milling about in the hallway and wondered which one might be reporting to Anna.

"Nothing yet, but they were in here this morning. Everything is fine." Sterling was relieved that the second sweep had uncovered nothing. When the initial check had turned up a listening device near her desk, she had arranged with Charlie for someone to search her offices for electronic bugging devices every few days. They had also installed a closed circuit camera system that filmed her office interior twenty-four hours a day. The monitors had been set up in a basement room with someone on duty, watching them.

Hearing that everything had come up clean, Sterling felt that she could speak freely with her secretary. "Has she tried to reach me?" They both knew that the attorney was referring to Samantha. The written message had been delivered to her over a week ago, but she still called Sterling's office daily.

"Yes, early this morning. No one was here but me and I made the mistake of picking up the phone. Reflex I guess." Sally hesitated to tell her boss how Sam had sounded. The concern in her voice had been rivaled by hurt. The message she had given to Sally needed to be conveyed, but the secretary wavered. Sam was right to feel the way she did, but something told Sally that Sterling had her reasons, too.

Sighing heavily, Sally decided to just plunge in. "She wanted me to tell you that you shouldn't make these kinds of decisions for her. She's 'worried and aggravated' I believe she said." Sterling smiled, able to hear Sam say the words, then realized the desperate nature of the situation and her spirits fell once again.

"I hesitate to ask, but did she say anything else?"

"She mentioned coming to your house looking for you." Sally waited.

"Yeah, well, she won't find me there. Neither will anybody else. I need you to get the rest of my clothes picked up and brought to the office. I won't be going back to the rental house." Sterling thought for a moment then made a request that surprised Sally.

"Call for me and RSVP that cocktail reception at the Dixon's would you. I'll be bringing a guest." Sterling hung up thinking about who she could call to go with her. She had often attended social events that related to her business. Some of them required her to appear with the traditional male escort. Others, like this one at the Dixon's were less rigid and allowed her to openly bring a female date with her. Sterling knew there would be a lot of people at this event and it was important that she create a stir.

The room went quiet, which was quite a feat considering that there were over a hundred people in it. The crowd had automatically responded when the beautiful pair of women came through the door and paused in the raised entryway. Sterling was stunning in oriental silk the color of old ivory. The pants, cut in flawless lines to fit her tall frame were covered to the knees by a long shirt, split high enough on the sides to reveal her midriff. The bear claw closures that held it together in the front were designed to lie on top of an underblouse, which Sterling had elected not to wear. Instead, the satin cord did little to reveal the fact that she was wearing no bra. This point was stressed further when the strikingly beautiful woman with Sterling turned to her and ran her hand up the attorney's arm while whispering in her ear. The warm breath contacting the skin of her neck, causing Sterling's nipples to tighten reflexively.

Sterling's mystery date caused quite a stir. She looked familiar to many of the other guests, but it took over an hour for the pasty-faced wife of a wealthy stockbroker to place her face. Once she realized the sultry beauty was the soon to be ex-wife of a local real estate magnate she had the attention of every gossip in the place. Although the guests at this gathering prided themselves on being open-minded enough to accept a same sex couple, they couldn't ignore the juicy twist of a thwarted millionaire losing his wife to another woman. This was too good an opportunity for the jealousy of the lesser rich to be vindicated.

The attorney's choice of women had been no accident. She'd specifically wanted someone high profile. It would get the word out and help convince Anna that she was carrying out her part of the bargain. It would hurt Sam, as would her many future phantom couplings. The thought sobered Sterling who had been enjoying the effect she and Jeri were having on the crowd until then.

Throughout the evening Sterling was attentive to her date, bringing her drinks before her glass had a chance to be emptied. Although they had made a fashionably late entrance at ten o'clock, by midnight Jeri was slightly slurring her words and Sterling recognized the need to get the woman out of there. Getting her to her house was no problem, as Jeri fell asleep soon after leaving the party and only woke up when they were pulling up to her house.

Sterling should have predicted the woman's behavior. Jeri took Sterling's hand and pushed it underneath her shamelessly short cocktail dress, into her crotch. This entire evening had been about pissing her husband off and although Sterling was not flagrant with her sexuality, her penchant for beautiful women was public knowledge. Jeri felt obligated to offer herself to the woman beside her and since Sterling had shown no evidence of interest in that vein, the drunken woman elected to do something about it herself.

The attorney gently tried to withdraw her hand, while reaching across Jeri to open her car door.

Jeri looked stricken. "Don't you find me attractive?" That was one scenario she hadn't figured on in her quest for vengeance against her husband.

"You're breathtaking, believe me, but you're also a little high and I don't think it would be a good idea to take advantage of you in that way." Sterling turned her charm up another notch as she helped the woman from the car.

Jeri, in a whiskey fog felt the need to make one more attempt before allowing Sterling to leave her at her door. She locked her hands behind Sterling's neck, hitting the attorney in the back of her head with the beaded purse she was holding. Oblivious to the fact she pulled Sterling's mouth within reach and proceeded to deliver a kiss that would have incited a riot in the attorney's body had it been the right tongue in her mouth, the right breath, sounding ragged and irregular. Jeri was all over the taller woman, pressing herself against Sterling's body all along its considerable length.

"Whoa there," Sterling was having trouble remembering who was in her arms. It was too easy to fantasize that it was Sam and she couldn't afford to let that happen. "I think I better get out of here before your neighbors call the police on us for indecent behavior." Jeri laughed a little. Having enjoyed an evening of public humiliation for her husband she decided to let Sterling off the hook for the time being. She had to admit she was a little high and more than a little tired. Jeri also suspected a roll in the hay with the incredibly sexy attorney would be something she would need all of her faculties to really enjoy.

"I want to voice my objection for the record councilor, but I concede your point. I am a little out of it. Next time for sure though?"

Sterling quickly nodded her agreement, knowing full well there would be no next time. Jeri had been the initial name on a long list of women who would be seen in public with Sterling Hayes over the weeks to come.

The obnoxious hum of the alarm clock eventually forced Sam's eye open. She couldn't believe it was time to get up when she felt that she'd only been sleeping a few minutes. Then she remembered that she HAD only been sleeping a few minutes.

For weeks, the young blonde had been unable to rest, to eat, to concentrate on work. Sam had tried to contact Sterling at first, but even she had too much pride to continue that effort after days and days of listening to lame excuses and recorded messages. Besides, rumors had been circulating for a while that Sterling was seeing someone, several someone's in fact.

Sam kept the note that Peter had relayed to her close at hand. She still read it several times a day, believing less and less its declaration of love. 'Why won't she just talk to me? Is that so damned much to ask? If she could just tell me, if I could hear her voice…Uugghh! Why won't she talk to me?' The anger and frustration had built in direct proportion to the lessening of belief.

The previous week Samantha had attended the closing on Sterling's new house, assuming incorrectly that the lawyer would have to be there. She had nervously anticipated seeing the beautiful barrister for several days only to be disappointed when the paperwork was handled by another lawyer in the firm, using a limited power of attorney to sign for Sterling. He handed Samantha a pile of papers that included her commission check before shaking her hand and rising from the closing table. The young man's next order of business was to confirm Sterling's absence from the meeting to Anna Bertilini.

'She looks so tired. My God, what am I doing to her with all of this insanity?' Sterling had dismissed the security guard in the basement an hour ago. She sat before the monitors watching Sam as she had been from the moment she entered the law firm lobby. Per her instructions, Sally had greeted the young woman and situated her in the conference room where one of Sterling's new associates had met them and handled the paperwork on the purchase of the new house. Sterling couldn't take her eyes off the young woman. 'I knew this was a mistake.' The attorney scolded herself, pounding her clenched fist on the arm of the chair she occupied. Sterling had debated for several days whether it would be better or worse to see Sam on the newly installed monitors. Now she knew for certain that it was worse. Much worse.

As Samantha was being escorted out of the law offices Sally, who had never left her side shook the young woman's hand, holding it a bit longer than was necessary. Sam searched the secretary's eyes for understanding, knowing that any question she asked would be rebuffed, as all of her calls and inquiries had been. It was Sterling's wish apparently and Samantha was well aware of Sally's loyalty to her employer.

The blonde seemed to hesitate and look around her briefly as she turned to leave, giving the lawyer a close up of her cherubic face. Sterling realized that Sam must be feeling the pull of being watched and she was ashamed of herself for being such a coward. There were no safe circumstances under which the lawyer could confront Sam and talk with her. Anyone could be watching them at almost any time, regardless of the precautions that had been taken. It went beyond the lawyer's concern for safety. Sterling was feeling guilty for her weakness in needing to see Samantha in any form available to her, even on a black and white security monitor.

Sterling stretched out in the chair, letting her head fall to one side, as if she had been struck. She HAD been assaulted after a fashion. Sam's eyes were vivid, even without the benefit of color on the monitor. Sterling could see so many emotions swirling in them and the longing that she, herself, had worked so hard to conquer rose up within her again. Her breath caught as the realtor took one last look around the lobby and went through the door.

Closing her eyes against the surge of despair rising in her, Sterling emitted a sob, a half-howl of undiluted agony as the closing door obscured Samantha's image. In her entire life she had wanted nothing so much as she wanted now to hold Samantha in her arms and murmur assurances, apologies, declarations of feeling. The rush of emotion translated itself into physical pain as Sterling's body tensed, tendons straining to contain the raw energy that burned through her.

She rose to leave her basement vantage point, knowing that the one camera located in the parking lot behind the building would afford her no further view of her love. It was a mixed blessing that the young blonde had chosen to park her car on the street. Sterling didn't have any way of knowing that Samantha had consciously done so to avoid spotting the lawyer's BMW thereby verifying her fear. She suspected that Sterling was not out of town, as she had been told. No, she very much imagined that Sterling was in Atlanta, if not sitting upstairs in her office, casually avoiding Sam.

Sally returned to her desk, shaking her head. She had been briefed by her boss concerning the closing. The secretary had anticipated the presence of the seller and Sam as his representative. What she couldn't have known, was that the young realtor would be so lovely, that she would like her immediately, or that the pain in her face would be so obvious. Sally's immediate response was the need to take her boss by the shoulders and shake her until she had her attention. The secretary would like to tell 'Miss tough as nails attorney' that she was blowing a chance that not many people ever got. Sally would like to cry, heartbroken for both of them.

Sam's mouth was drawn into a thin, grim line when she returned to her office. Peter knew her well enough to read her face and her body language. He simply put her message slips on her desk, asked if she needed anything and left her alone in her office. As soon as the door closed behind him, Sam dropped her head to her desk. Shoulders shaking she cried, her body a broken column of frustration and anger. She was fighting an invisible enemy and it was killing her.

A soft knock on her door a half-hour later brought her into the present. Her tears had already dried; her resolve was firmly back in place when she responded. "Come on in Peter." There was no doubt as to her visitor's identity. He placed a mug of tea on her desk and searched her face. Sam avoided looking at him, aware that she must look haggard after her emotional outburst of a few minutes earlier.

"You OK? Want to go to lunch with me later? Or maybe you'd like to go home early today and rest, huh? I can handle things here easily enough. Just hand over your whip and chair."

She laughed softly in spite of herself. Samantha recognized what a treasure she had in a friend like Peter. "That last suggestion sounds pretty good, actually. If I'm gonna have an emotional breakdown, I'd at least like to have it in private. Everybody that walks by my door acts as if they're looking at an exhibit."

"They care about you, too, Sam. Frankly I don't think anyone around here realized that you were capable of such total devastation and unhappiness." He smiled, hoping she had taken his remark as the joke he had intended it to be. "You ought to consider going out dancing tonight. Why don't I get hold of Janet and…"

"Not yet Peter. Soon maybe, but please, not yet. I just need a little time."

Samson had been in town for three days before he actually got to see Sterling in person. She was still moving around quite a lot, staying in hotels, which she paid for in cash. Gino had taught her many things in her youth. The strapped stacks of cash in her office safe had come in very handy. Anna and her goons couldn't trace her whereabouts through credit card receipts at least. It would give her an opportunity to research her opponent without Anna's knowledge. It would also allow Sterling to get reports on Sam without placing her in jeopardy.

The sky was just turning pre-dawn pink when the Boston detective entered the institutional interior of the Waffle House Sterling had dictated. She stood as soon as she saw him and waited patiently for him to approach. When he got close enough to see the trouble in her eyes his footsteps faltered, but she went the last steps to meet him and circled his slim shoulders with her arms.

Samson's eyes closed involuntarily at the feel of the woman he held against him. Chastising himself for his reaction, he tried to pull away but was surprised to find that Sterling would not allow it just yet. When she was able to, she backed away, staring at the floor, embarrassed by her need. The detective made a lame joke to ease the tension between them, before talk turned serious.

"You look like shit," he threw at her. She laughed in response.

"Yeah, well, you always look like shit. I guess we're on even ground here, huh?" She smiled at him and the emotions evident in her eyes broke his heart. Samson had known that Sterling was in a bad situation, he just hadn't realized how bad, until now.

Samson waded right into the problem. "She's crackers." It was the simplest of statements, but it confirmed her suspicions and her head dropped.

"When the old man died, Joey and Sal took over the business. Joey was, well… you know Joey. He's still an idiot and Sal isn't much better. Neither of them had any real aptitude for business. Anna quietly began running things from the shadows. When the old lady died, Anna stopped the pretense by declaring herself the head of the family."

Sterling's only reaction thus far had been a slight grimace when Samson referred to Gino as 'the old man'. The detective had meant no disrespect, but it still elicited an automatic response from the attorney.

There was more information. The two old friends ordered breakfast and drank many cups of coffee, while Samson related the rest of his news.

"Her dead brothers' widows have splintered off and moved away. Joey and Sal are still on the scene. Anna's got free rein and no sounding board. No husband, no boyfriend…nothing."

"You might try looking for a girlfriend." Sterling was matter of fact in the delivery of the information, which surprised Samson. He would have thought that Anna's preference for women would have surfaced in his investigation of the Bertilini matriarch.

"Charlie told me she was after you. I don't get it, though." Samson was running every possible scenario through his brain and coming up blank.

"It's complicated, but she has a personal vendetta against me. More accurately, she refuses to allow me my happiness." Sterling was concentrating on some unspoken idea. Samson studied her features, unnoticed.

"If she planned to kill you, you would be dead." Samson's statement caused a chill in her.

Her years of association with the Bertilinis seemed a lifetime ago. This thing with Anna was most frightening when she considered that the woman did not want her life, only her misery.

Samson scanned the scribbled notes in his palm-sized notebook. "She's moving some of their operation down here. They bought a restaurant in town somewhere. There's a condo on Lenox Road that is titled to one of her dummy corporations. The Feds still keep a pretty close eye on that whole bunch. They're setting up a sting, in fact. Maybe you could help out?"

Sterling was very unhappy to hear that Anna was local, at least part of the time. Working with the Feds to put her behind bars was her only option besides murder. Even that might not solve her problems. There was always the possibility of retribution. Sterling could only hope that Anna had pissed off enough people on her rise to power.

"They found one bug at the office," she related. I've moved out of the rental house, but I'm staying in a different hotel every third day or so and it's getting old. Once I get a plan in place, there won't be as much of a need for secrecy. I want you to supervise the security people. They're supposed to beef up the system that's already in the new house." She shook her head, upset and confused by what he had told her. "I'm playing by her rules, but this whole thing is scary as hell."

Samson had heard about Samantha soon after her first dinner with Sterling. In his conversations with the attorney since then, Sam's name came up with increasing frequency. It didn't take a detective, although he was one, to see Sterling's growing feelings for the blonde realtor. He had looked forward to meeting her on his next vacation trip to Atlanta.

"You can't even see her for a few minutes?" He could see that the separation was killing his friend.

"No, they're following her all of the time." She looked up at him for a long time before pulling a stack of newspaper clippings from her pocket and dropping them on the table. "I also have a bodyguard following her, but she doesn't know it. I wish you would check on that for me while you're here. I can't let them find anything out."

Samson nodded his understanding as he glanced at the photos of Sterling in the clippings. She was joined in every one by a different beauty. He realized immediately what she was doing to protect her friend.

"By the way, there is no 'while I'm here'. I'm here until this thing is over, one way or the other." In a rare show of emotion, Samson reached across the table and covered her large hand with his larger one.

"Thanks," she breathed. " This whole business is scary as hell. I have to say, I feel a lot less alone with you here."

"You are a lot less alone, and don't you forget it." His smile was reassuring.

Beverly was holding on line one. She was probably calling to report another 'sighting' as Sam had come to think of them. Every time Sterling appeared in public with some stunning woman the banker couldn't seem to wait to let Sam know about it.

'I don't know why she won't give this up. It wouldn't matter if Sterling was determined to be an ax murderer, it wouldn't change my feelings…about either one of them.' The thought surprised her. Somehow in spite of the pain she felt, a part of her had already started to forgive the dark attorney for her disappearing act. Each incident caused less pain as the numbness in her heart spread.

"Hi Bev. What's up?" 'Straight to the point might get this over with a little quicker.'

"I'm fine thank you. Thanks for asking," the banker responded sarcastically.

"Sorry, just a bit rushed today. How are you?" They both knew it was a moot point now.

"I'm great. I just heard through the grapevine that your lawyer friend has her picture in Southern Voice this week. Thought you might want to check it out." 'For your scrap book' Beverly thought to herself.

"Oh yeah I heard," Sam lied. "You get the idea that she has hired a publicist what with that thing last weekend and now this." Sam was referring to the photograph in the Atlanta papers. A big color picture shot at the 'Aids Walk' had been reproduced on the front page of the Lifestyles section. Sterling, arm draped casually over the shoulder of a drop-dead gorgeous brunette made quite an image to go with her quoted remark in the news article. Samantha had seen the photo despite Peter's efforts to keep her from it. She had caught him sneaking down her driveway with her Sunday newspaper and demanded an explanation. He sheepishly showed her the offending item. Sam had gritted her teeth and turned on her heel in retreat, Peter following quietly behind her into the house.

Samantha became aware of Beverly's voice droning on. She hadn't heard a word, but just as she was rejoining the conversation caught something about a dinner date.

"Sorry Bev, I'm not going out much anymore." Having lost patience with the banker's attempts at villainizing Sterling, Samantha added to her response. "To tell you the truth Bev, I'm trying to decide between joining a convent or dating men. You just don't figure into that at all." Samantha excused herself, feigning an early arrival of her two o'clock appointment and hung up. 'I'm too old and too tired to work so hard at sparing that woman's feelings when she obviously damned and determined to hurt mine.'

She buzzed Peter and requested a copy of the newspaper Bev had mentioned. Peter started objecting immediately, and her request turned into an order. Within ten minutes, he was standing in front of her desk with a copy, garnered from the lobby of a local restaurant.

"You asked for it. Just remember that," he said before dropping the offending article on her desk and leaving her office.

Slowly, Samantha opened the paper and began scanning it. There, on page seven was a beautiful likeness of Sterling, seated at a benefit. She was accompanied by a high maintenance woman who looked familiar. It took a second for Sam to realize that she was an actress of some celebrity who had been born and raised locally. The woman returned to Atlanta for a visit at Sterling's behest the article said, to help raise money for charity. Sam didn't even bother to read the details. It didn't matter why she was there. What mattered was the look on her face as she gazed up at Sterling. The attorney was looking away, unaware of the worshipful glance targeting her. Sam's stomach clenched as she studied the two women in the picture and thought about how their evening might have progressed. She crumpled the paper hurriedly and tossed it into her wastebasket.

She held out her hand to cut off the questions and/or conversation Peter was obviously about to hurl at her. "Going home. I'm not feeling well. Cancel my appointments. I'll call you about tomorrow." This last was literally said over her shoulder as the door swept closed behind her. Worried and dejected, Peter sat down heavily at his desk to do his boss' bidding.

Sterling was finally sleeping soundly, but it had taken hours of tossing and turning. Exhaustion had finally pulled her down into unconsciousness. Thoughts of Samantha and what she might be doing haunted her thoughts.

During the day, Sterling had plenty to do to occupy her mind. Between overseeing her office and the periodic appearances in court that were required of her, the attorney had little time to enjoy the wide expanses of her new home. In fact, nothing about the house gave her any feeling of comfort except the battered sofa downstairs in the den. Even the bed she slept in was new, picked out by Sam and her Aunt Jane on the shopping afternoon the three enjoyed just weeks before.

The dark head stirred, some thought or dream was again plaguing the sleeping woman. Rolling over in the pre-dawn greyness of her bedroom, Sterling opened one eye to check the time. 'Five o'clock? I need to sleep a while longer.' She pulled the sheet over her head and the softness of both pillows to her face. Relaxing into the feel of full arms, the semi-conscious attorney had a smile playing across her lips. Then she remembered and it came crashing down on her.

Sterling threw back the covers in anger and pulled her long legs over the side of the bed. The tee shirt she'd slept in was twisted around her torso and she fought to pull it from underneath her. Stretching for a moment, she stared at the empty space around her. The bedroom furniture had been ordered and was due for delivery in another few days. Sterling winced at the memory of the fun and laughter she had enjoyed the day it was selected. Shaking her head to dissolve the memory, she stood, considering the events of the day ahead of her.

All of the attorney's considerable wardrobe had now been moved into the new house. She absently selected a tailored trial suit in charcoal grey with a red pinstripe. Tossing it onto the bed, she made her way into the bathroom to start the shower. While it was getting hot, Sterling picked up her toothbrush and started her morning routine. She glanced at the mirror and caught her own reflection, stopping her stock still. 'What are you doing? Are you crazy? You're actually going to take on the Mob for the sake of a woman who probably wouldn't speak to you now if you were literally dying!' The pain of the last part wounded her. The attorney knew it was probably true, although she had little to go on except the reports coming back to her from the bodyguard following Sam. Even those were filtered through Charlie and held very little information of a personal nature.

Her head dropped in defeat, the foaming toothbrush in her mouth forgotten. Weeks of this charade had taken a huge toll on the attorney. Sterling's work was lackluster at best. She had apologized to a half-dozen clients, refusing them the expected personal handling of their business, naming illness as her excuse. They accepted the situation graciously, all but Ralph Slidell. Sterling had to tell him more than she had wanted to in order to make him understand her need for a hiatus from her practice.

"Why don't you go to the police?" Ralph cared for the woman on the other end of the secured telephone line.

"It's too complicated to go into on the phone, but believe me, I have considered that and discarded it as a viable possibility for the time being. Look, just treat this as a medical leave of absence, call it a mental illness. I promise I'll be back at work full time as soon as it's settled." Sterling had in fact, gone to the FBI but could not tell Ralph Slidell that and endanger him.

When she had offered him all of the reassurance she could muster, she hung up the phone, closed her eyes and whispered a prayer. The latter was not a customary practice for Sterling who only recently reacquainted her intellect with the existence of a higher being. The years of her youth left her faithless and later she had been guilty of so much darkness that she assumed no god would claim her. Many things changed with the introduction of Samantha Hilliard into her life. Now, she often found herself asking God for help, strength and understanding on a regular basis. Mostly she entreated him to maintain Sam's safety through this current mess she had involved the beautiful young woman in.

Anna flew home to Boston each weekend to handle various details of the move. Sterling had refused to accompany her on these trips. The lawyer never really knew how long Anna would be gone and simply anticipated her return with dread through her entire absence.

When Sally buzzed her on the intercom and identified the caller on line one, Sterling let go a lengthy sigh. Her luck had just run out.

"I just got into town. How about meeting me for dinner?" Anna Bertilini had started making a habit of these short-notice invitations. It pleased her to have Sterling at her beck and call. The attorney had no life outside the office anyway and at least it eliminated the necessity of an ongoing string of women, who it was getting harder to fend off at the end of the evening. By now, Anna was perfectly sure that Sterling was not seeing Sam. The realtor, Anna assumed, had heard or seen enough of Sterling's escapades to move on. Of course, Anna Bertilini could not understand the depth of the love Sam felt for Sterling since she, herself had never experienced anything close to it.

"Sure, why not?" Sterling sounded more enthusiastic than she felt. Maintaining the charade was wearing her down.

"Plan on staying at the townhouse for a few days." It was a statement, not a question and the lawyer felt her temper flare. Anna seemed to sense through the silence that she had overstepped and softened the command. "I'd really appreciate it, Sterling. I have a lot to talk with you about and it would be so much easier if you were with me in the evenings."

Some of the matters Anna was working on didn't bear public discussion, even in the restaurant that she herself owned. Her suggestion made sense, but it still riled Sterling to be ordered about like an employee.

'Hell, I AM an employee. Who am I kidding? Why shouldn't she treat me any way she wants to? What difference does it make anyway? I have no life anymore.' The dark attorney had fought depression from her loss of Samantha. That coupled with this alliance had her drowning in despair. 'I have to go along, it's the only way I'll get the information the bureau needs for the sting. I can spend a few more evenings with her even if it does make my skin crawl.'

"Whatever. I'll meet you at eight. I have a lot to finish up here first." Sterling hung up the phone without saying goodbye.

Anna fairly beamed when she saw Sterling's tall figure enter the intimate dining room where they usually met. It was apparent that she was still deluding herself and believed that something personal was possible in the relationship between them.

Seeing Anna's reaction to her arrival made Sterling wonder many things. 'Maybe she's just lonely. Certainly a woman in Anna's line of work wouldn't have a lot of close friends. Then too, she IS crazy. That probably runs people off in droves.' The attorney let go a twisted laugh as she made her way between the sparsely scattered tables to the corner of the room.

"Hello." Dark eyes glittered in the light of a candle burning on the table between them. Their server appeared within minutes with a generous scotch on the rocks for the lawyer and smiled at her as he sat it on the table. "Thanks Tony. You're the best. How did you know that I really needed this?" She lifted the glass and saluted him with it before taking a substantial drink.

"How are things in the Land of Oz?" Sterling had relaxed into her role and took great liberties with her attitude towards her dinner partner.

Anna began a half-hour monologue that covered the events of her recent trip to Boston. She claimed that it would be her last one for a long while, since everything was now in place for the Atlanta office. Sterling listened, but just barely as she moved salad around on her plate. Soon the waiter would take it away and she could move something different around on the next plate.

A judgement had been reached in Sterling's last case earlier in the day. The calendar pages on her desk held little now in the way of legitimate business. Sterling Hayes had begun her descent into darkness once again. She wondered if Samantha knew what was going on, that she had begun representing the Bertilinis again. The attorney wondered, too, if Charlie would have anything interesting in his next report about her. A new wave of misery swept through the attorney at the thought and Sterling raised the glass of scotch to her lips again.

Dinner was finally over and the two women left the establishment. Anna arranged for one of her people to drive Sterling's car to the townhouse so that the two of them could ride together. Anna's car and driver stood waiting. As always, he parked illegally at the front door. The short ride was quiet and neither passenger's cell phone rang for a change. They entered the dimly lit foyer and Sterling sat her briefcase at the base of an entry table. A glance in the mirror above it reflected a stranger. She turned away, just as Anna came up behind her and pulled her into a kiss.

Startled, Sterling stiffened and backed away. Anna laughed and began to embrace the taller woman again, but the lawyer was having none of it. Anna smiled seductively. "I just wanted to greet you properly." Anna's smile was reminiscent of Gino the predator's. "I thought a seduction scene was in order."

"Let's get something straight between us right now Anna." Sterling held her hands out in front of herself, clearly indicating that an invasion of her space was unwelcomed. "I'll give up Sam, ruin my business, present a united front to the world between you and me, but I won't sleep with you. Ever." She let the words hang between them for a moment. "You are already getting my soul, Anna, leave me my body, please." The taller woman went into the living room to pour herself another stiff drink before hurling herself onto the sofa.

Anna studied her while she processed her own reaction to the rebuff. 'She just needs a little time to get used to the idea,' the younger woman thought. 'I'm in no hurry. I can wait.'

Samantha was late for a closing. She alternated between glancing at her watch, willing the hands to move slowly and studying the red light hanging over the intersection. Neither object was cooperating. Motion in her periphery drew the young woman's attention and she casually looked over to check out the car moving up beside her. Sam instantly recognized the sleek body of a silver BMW. Sterling was at the wheel, but was concentrating on something and had not seen her. The realtor started to touch the pad on the steering column to sound the horn, then lost her courage.

'My God, she looks terrible,' was all the reaction that Sam allowed herself. A wave of sympathy crashed over her as she studied the tired features of the familiar face. As Sam's face twisted in anguish, Sterling suddenly looked up and recognized her. The attorney's mouth dropped open to let a breath escape as her eyes searched Sam's. To her surprise she found no hatred there, only hurt. Sterling had an automatic and overwhelming need to mouth three words across the distance separating them, but knew that they would blow Sam's world apart and start the processing of pain over again. Instead, Sterling watched helplessly while Samantha responded to the honking horn behind them and drove away.

The realtor made a sharp left at the next intersection, insuring that Sterling couldn't follow her. Sam had no reason to believe that the attorney would even try, but she was taking no chances. At the moment, her pulse was throbbing triple time and tears were starting to track down her face, taking her mascara with them.

Samantha pulled to the curb and struggled with the knob that would start her emergency flashers. Taking deep breaths, she tried to order her thoughts, but nothing helped. After five full minutes, chaos still prevailed and she called Peter. Sam told him to relay the message to the closing attorney that she had been in a collision, but would be arriving shortly. Peter went berserk, assuming she was hurt. She explained that it wasn't that kind of a collision, but wouldn't go into details.

He was reluctant to accept her story, but promised to do as she had bid him. Sam put her cell phone back into her purse and pulled out a wadded kleenex to wipe her face. As she strained to see the damage to her makeup and repair it in the rear view mirror, Sam's mind raced. She had wished for weeks, just to see Sterling's face again. She had convinced herself that it would be enough, just to look into her eyes one more time. Samantha now knew that theory for the total lie that it was. Her heart was beyond broken and she hadn't thought it possible to want something so much as she wanted to understand what had happened between them.

'I can't! I simply CAN NOT think about this right now. I have to walk into that attorney's office in twenty minutes and act like a professional business woman.' Sam scolded herself until she was able to regain control of her emotions.

The barrister was stricken. She pressed the accelerator and steered her little car toward her office, but remembered none of the trip later. Sterling's imposing figure crashed through the outer offices of her firm, looking neither left nor right. Sally, who had been expecting the arrival knew instantly that something was terribly wrong. She watched her employer storm by, her face pale and drawn. No words were exchanged as Sterling swept through the massive door to her office and hurriedly pushed it closed behind her.

She rested there, her back against the solid wood, some kind of comfort in her reeling world. Sterling could not close her eyes, because each time she did, a picture of Sam's face as it had looked at the stop light came screaming back at her. 'I thought I was past this. My God, but she is beautiful. I thought my heart would stop.' Random thoughts flashed through her quick mind as Sterling stood there, trying to regain some control. The barrister had recognized several things in Sam's eyes during their brief encounter and chief among them was pain. It was one thing for Sterling to endure suffering, but she could not allow Samantha to be subjected to it any longer.

Slumping into her desk chair, Sterling understood with perfect clarity what she had to do. The plan that she had so carefully implemented wasn't set to go into action for several more weeks, but the attorney knew that she couldn't perpetuate her charade with Anna any longer. Sterling would have to convince her new friends at the bureau that they had to move on the Bertilinis immediately.

It no longer mattered whether Sterling survived the sting and its aftermath. Even death was preferable to her current predicament.

Showered, dressed and impeccably groomed, it was time to go into the theater of Sterling's world and give the performance of her lifetime. Background music floated from the open top of an ebony grand piano. It wasn't the kind of music that distracted or evoked thought but the pianist producing it caused a stir. A shimmering cape of white-blond hair covered the shoulders of a black cutaway tail coat. The traditional black pants were in evidence as were the cummerbund and bow tie adorning her torso, but no shirt. Instead, she had onyx studs and cufflinks attached to skin in the appropriate places by some unidentifiable means. Her bare breasts were in easy view and many in the crowd were amused by this fact. Others were appalled.

Judging by the reaction, Sterling determined the crowd to be a standard mix of progressive and conservative art lovers. This was an important show for a new artist and many among the gallery's regular patrons were in attendance. The people at this gathering represented a huge amount of wealth and did not want to fend off entrepreneurs looking for investors all evening. Nor did they feel comfortable with the unknown commodity of novice collectors.

Sterling had worked with Sally to pepper the relatively small guest list with enough of her own supposedly distant relatives and 'European art critics' to explain away the presence of the unfamiliar faces belonging to the FBI agents in attendance. The attorney had carefully rehearsed the four men and two women on the finer points of the art show they were pretending to attend. Surprisingly, most of them displayed an aptitude for understanding the subtle themes of the exhibit. The artist was unaware of her participation in a government sting. She had been thrilled at the opportunity to show her work, and willing to demonstrate for Sterling just how much. The attorney had extricated herself from the young woman twice already and looked up from sipping the pale liquid in her glass to see the artist bearing down on her again.

That was the moment that Samson chose to appear in front of her. Sterling hooked her arm through his and led him into the gallery office which had been secured for her private use for the evening. She gratefully led him inside and closed the door, silencing the sounds of talk, music and laughter.

"I am so nervous man. Has everything been checked out with the microphones?" Samson nodded, amused that she had slipped back into the vernacular of her youth. He lifted the glass the lawyer sat on the edge of the desk to sniff its contents. He made a sour face and put it back.

"Everything has been double and triple checked. Are you OK with everything?" She nodded and sat down behind the desk. "Anna call you tonight?"

Sterling indicated with a nod that she had in fact. "Yes, she's going to be fashionably late, but she wouldn't miss this opportunity for the world. The woman wants to rub shoulders with the acceptable wealthy so badly that she is walking into this blind." Sterling leaned forward to snag her glass and drained the champagne from it in one gulp. "Hopefully they can get enough tonight to wrap this up. I'm ready for this to be over, if it ever can be."

There was a plan in place to arrest and prosecute Anna Bertilini on a list of Federal charges. Sterling and Samson had worked together to collect documents, tape conversations and locate witnesses willing to testify against the powerful woman. Anna, in her flight from her home base of Boston, had stepped on a lot of toes. Additionally, she had been so eager to establish herself quickly in the south that she had treated her employees badly, showing no respect for their loyalty to the family. Some had begun to doubt her abilities at first and later, her capability to make decisions that effected all of them.

More than anything else, Sterling's survival would depend on the help of Carlos, Gino's bodyguard for almost three decades. He was hard to locate, secreted as he was in his Florida retirement retreat. Sterling had prevailed, though and asked permission to meet with him. The lawyer had been surprised to see that Carlos looked younger with the passage of time instead of older. He recognized her reaction immediately and laughed as he shook her hand, inviting her to sit in the cozy conditioned air of his den.

His smile seemed genuine and Sterling realized that she had never seen it before today. The retired mobster's explanation was brief. "I have no stress in my life since I retired. Not many of us get an opportunity to walk away from all of that." The obvious question from this man of few words had to come. "Why would you go back to it after you made a clean getaway?"

She studied him carefully, knowing that her respect for him and his respect for Gino might be the only thing to keep her alive after their meeting. "I need your help and I have no right to ask for or expect it. That puts me in a bad position to negotiate." He studied her without interrupting. "Gino's daughter has decided to relocate in Atlanta and is using me to get her foot in the door." She hesitated for only an instant before continuing. "I'm helping her only because I have no choice. She's blackmailing me, Carlos and I have to come up with enough evidence to get her put away."

The attorney was asking Carlos to give somebody up to the authorities, something that totally violated the moral code of a man who had managed to leave the mob while still alive. Not only that, but Sterling was delivering Gino's daughter to the FBI and wanted him to help carry the tray.

"I've heard things. She's made a lot of people unhappy." He nodded his head, agreeing with his own statement. Carlos was weighing something in his own mind. "What's she got on you?"

He had asked casually, used to the exchange of this kind of information just as other people conversed about the items on their grocery lists.

"She's threatened to kill someone very dear to me..." Sterling looked him squarely in the eye and added "…someone I love." There was silence as Carlos considered this new information.

The aging bodyguard ran his fingers through his now greying hair, thinking hard. "I thought she might still be pissed about you and Gino. She was you know."

"She only told me recently, but …"

Carlos assured the young woman that she needn't go into details. He had been well aware of Anna's unnatural attachment to her father and the jealousy that Sterling caused when she came into the picture. Sterling had hoped to spare the loyal man these truths, rightly fearful that he would interpret them as a slur on Gino's memory.

"He wouldn't see it, although it was plain enough. It's no wonder she got bent in here." He touched his chest. "Her mother was always harping and damning Gino. Her brothers were torn between worshipping the man and wanting him dead. None of them could see her in the role of a partner in the business even though she's really smart." He watched his feet as he passed the only judgement on Gino Bertilini he had made in his entire lifetime. "The Boss spoiled her, I think."

The attorney was experiencing pain right along with Carlos. The whole situation was so bizarre and related to a lifetime they had both purposefully but not successfully forgotten. "I'll make some calls. You better not come here again, though." The attorney realized that to do so would place Carlos in danger. Just then, two of his three grandchildren ran through the room, chasing each other. The old man shouted for them to stop, then demanded they apologize before he introduced them to his guest. Sterling looked at him in amazement. It had never even occurred to her that he had ever married much less spawned grandchildren. He smiled as he granted permission for the children to go outside and play.

"I do know what it is like to love someone and to fear for their safety. It has always been an unbendable rule to leave a man's family and loved ones out of the affairs of the business. She has broken it."

Later, he stood looking out at the rolling surf and remembered the promise he had made to Sterling as she left. "I will not allow her to dishonor what my friend stood for." Carlos didn't kid himself, Gino Bertilini had been a gangster, but a gangster with a modicum of integrity and a man who valued and understood loyalty. Carlos would have to stop Anna somehow.

A passing tray slowed long enough for the attorney to lift a crystal flute from it. The champagne was expensive, she noted and wondered how much it had cost her. It didn't matter, really. If tonight's events didn't unfold as she predicted, her wealth would be meaningless as would her life.

Samson knew as well as Sterling did that Anna might not go quietly when the sting started and that this could be the last hours of their lives or their friendship. The detective winced at the thought of having to bury the woman before him. He would gratefully give up his life instead. Light tapping on the door interrupted the hushed conversation between the two old friends. "Showtime," she whispered and giving her friend a long, meaningful look, she swept from the office.

An overly enthusiastic kiss was planted on her jaw before she could back up enough to avoid it. "You look lovely, as always," she greeted Anna and took her coat. "I'll be right back," and she was, carrying with her two full flutes of champagne. Handing one to her guest, Sterling turned to study the crowd and give Anna a chance to acclimate. The attorney needed for her guest to be comfortable tonight.

Sterling hooked her arm loosely around Anna's back and steered her through the exhibit, introducing her to the other guests as they went. Occasionally Anna would glance at the paintings she was actually here to see, but she made no comment. The young artist came over, interested in this new guest and obviously close friend to her patron. Anna spoke briefly with the young woman, distracted the entire time by the people moving about the gallery.

"They don't dress formally for this kind of thing?" Sterling had answered a multitude of questions for her tormentor in the past weeks. Anna still had trouble understanding the principle of millionaire's eccentricities as well as the casual grace that substituted for formality here in the south.

"Not unless the spirit moves them. There is everything here from fur coats to painter's paints." The combination of stress and the press of bodies around her made Sterling start to perspire. She whispered into Anna's ear, the need to get some air and started to move away from the younger woman.

Anna took Sterling's hand, an inappropriate gesture, and commented that she would go along for the ride.

'She went for it.' The lawyer enjoyed relief as Anna followed her into the office and sat down. "I'm having a wonderful time."

The attorney bit back the sarcastic remark before it sprang from her lips. This was the moment when Sterling needed to make a believer out of Anna, not antagonize her. Sterling stretched out her long legs and appeared to relax into the upholstery of the desk chair she sat in. "How is everything going with the distribution set up?" It was a casual inquiry but it pleased Anna that she had asked it. More and more lately, Sterling seemed to be taking a genuine interest in the details of her family's business.

"It's not developing as fast as I would like, but then I'm interviewing a lot of new people. I don't want this product handled by thugs."

"You think there's such a thing as a white collar drug dealer, huh?" The attorney chuckled then turned to face the young mob boss head on. Her smile melted Anna's irritation at the remark.

Anna had angered a lot of the usual distribution people by either cutting them out all together or minimizing their involvement. Most of the staff that she had relocated with her was relegated to less profitable undertakings or plain old grunt work. A lot of people were pissed off and no amount of talk could persuade Anna to detour from her course. Her attitude about the situation had yielded yet another hand full of individuals willing to talk to the FBI.

"I don't worry too much about the color of their collars, but I would like bring people into my organization with IQ's that are in triple digits at least." Sterling waited, less amused by the exchange than she appeared to be, and hoping that Anna would continue to talk.

"The nice thing about being in the south is that I am so much closer to the entry site. I can be in Savannah in five hours if I am needed and I might just oversee all the deliveries personally. Savannah is, after all, a beautiful city. Maybe you can find the time to let me show it to you?" She reached for Sterling's hand and stroked its palm in a gesture of intimacy. When the attorney swallowed hard, Anna assumed her response was based on desire. It was in fact an effort not to vomit and blow the whole set up.

Gino's daughter began to lean across the desk and Sterling quickly knocked a ledger to the floor with her elbow. While retrieving it, she brought the conversation back to business. "How often will you be going to Savannah?"

"Once every six weeks should be adequate. I need to keep the money moving, but I'm not greedy like my brothers."

Sterling straightened up and placed the ledger back on the edge of the desk. She laughed convincingly. "Who's really taking care of things in Boston now that you're gone? I know damn well Sal and Joey aren't capable."

Anna reeled off a list of names that had the FBI agents in the recording booth below them laughing and high-fiving each other. It wasn't enough. Sterling wanted this woman buried deep. More questions were forthcoming and her feigned interest in Anna's work swelled the mobster with pride. A steady stream of incriminating information began to pour forth. Talk of crimes old and new went on for a half hour before the rude interruption of a fire horn caused both women to jump.

"What the hell…?" Sterling was confused as she rose quickly from her chair. She hadn't even made it to the office door when one of the female agents posing as an art critic burst through it. Her eyes communicated panic to the attorney and together, they raced down the hallway to find the source of the problem. The FBI had planned a diversion to separate the two women but it involved a call on Anna's cell phone. Few people had the number or would dare to call it when she had issued orders not to except in an emergency.

Anna had remained behind. She reached into her clutch bag and retrieved her phone. A single digit activated the speed dial and her personal bodyguard, whom she had asked to remain outside, was on the line.

The patrons quickly filed out of the building onto the sidewalk across the street, chattering noisily among themselves. No smoke was evident, but they assumed they would be notified if and when it was safe to return to the gallery. While they sipped champagne and made jokes about the panic of the previous minutes, Sterling rushed through the empty maze of half walls and rooms that comprised the facility. Fearful for the paintings and other art treasures collected under the same roof as she brought a certain feeling of déjà vu. As the attorney was reliving the terror she had felt that night at her house with the smoke rolling towards she experienced a sudden shattering of light inside her eyelids and then nothing.

Voice were mumbling unintelligible words off to her right side. Sterling lifted her head a little and was rewarded for her effort with a shock of nauseating pain. She fell back into the rough cot she had been placed on.

"She's waking up. Bring her over here and put her on this chair." It was Anna's voice, calm and in charge, issuing orders as Sterling was lifted and half dragged across a dirty concrete floor and dropped carelessly into a ramshackle wooden chair. A monumental headache was throbbing behind her squinting eyes as she held her hand up to shield them from the bright light. Looking around her for the first time, the attorney tried to pinpoint her whereabouts but did not recognize her surroundings.

Anna finally completed her conversation with the distinguished looking man she was speaking to. Surprisingly it was him and not Gino's daughter that approached her.

"My name is Shawn." His smile was sincere and Sterling began to respond in kind when a lightening fast fist came up from his side and caught her under the chin. Light exploded in her head once again and she slumped forward. The sticky warmth of blood ran down the attorney's jaw from her split lip to the top of her collar in seconds. The man who had introduced himself as Shawn carefully propped her up and broke a capsule under her nose to rouse her to full consciousness.

Sterling jerked awake and started to rise reflexively out of the chair to defend herself. He pushed her down with a warning look. She decided to cooperate for the moment and give herself a chance to get her bearings. The attorney could not stop the question that sprang from her lips.

"What in the hell is going on here?" Anna laughed loudly and Sterling noted that the woman had taken a seat at a table just outside the wash of light her own chair was located in.

"You are once again my entertainment for the evening dear." The dark eyes danced as she raised a toast to the lawyer before continuing. "I am disappointed in you Sterling. I thought you were a worthy adversary until you brought in the FBI. They are so crude in their techniques and execution. I can't imagine why you wouldn't expect me to find out about your little plot to hand me over." Anna was acting. The attorney had played the game well and Anna had learned of the plan only hours ago. She had very nearly walked right into the trap laid for her.

Sterling was trying to think, which was difficult with the cloud of pain hovering above her shoulders. She wished now that she had agreed to a microphone hidden on her person, but had refused the FBI team, unsure if Anna might try to put her hands on Sterling and discover it. 'You're on your own, kid. Think!' She tried to focus her eyes into the darkness and ascertain the number of people present at this little soiree. Besides Shawn and Anna, there seemed to be only two other attendees, one standing at attention on each side of their boss. The three men were definitely armed but Anna usually carried her 380 automatic in her purse, which was not in view.

Shawn was talking to Sterling now in low tones. The attorney studied his features and tried to concentrate on his words.

"You are a beautiful creature. It is such a shame that you have sacrificed yourself." He rammed his fist into her face, and turned to watch a satisfied smile spread over Anna's countenance with the crunch of Sterling's breaking nose.

Blood ran in ropes down the attorney's chin and stained the front of her elegant outfit. Sterling fought for consciousness as waves of pain threatened to take her out. Almost everyone had the tendency to bleed freely above the shoulders, but even as a teenager she had been a copious bleeder when hit in the face. She hoped that would work in her favor now.

Her assailant stepped back to give Anna a better view of her prey. She studied Sterling, her head cocked to one side as if trying to determine if the damage was acceptable. "Yes, I think we are almost ready to start asking questions now." The dark eyed woman rose from her chair and strolled with casual grace to where Sterling sat.

"It is a forgone conclusion that your life is forfeit. I will give you a chance to spare the lives of your little blond cunt and that moth eaten remnant of a cop you have befriended. Don't toy with me though, my dear. I have run out of patience with you."

The lawyer reached up and wiped at the mess on her face, succeeding only in smearing the blood over a greater area. It was the first step in her emerging plan.

The first question came from behind Sterling as Anna circled her chair. "How much information have you given them?" When the attorney hesitated to answer, Shawn stepped up. He was holding something down beside him which Sterling did not recognize until it smashed into her right knee cap. The well used Louisville Slugger did its job and the attorney cried out for the first time.

"Let's try this one more time my dear. What do they know?" Anna watched as Sterling breathed slowly trying to control the shock of unbearable fire running through her knee. At that moment, she could not speak. Knowing or not knowing wasn't even an issue.

Sterling's tormentor was already walking towards her. He looked to Anna for instruction and was surprised when she waved him off. "Give her a moment to think about what she is about to sacrifice." She turned to the lawyer and narrowed her eyes. "The next pain will be exquisite my dear and will equal the pain your blonde slut will suffer at Shawn's hands if you do not cooperate."

There was no reason to assume that Anna was bluffing, Sterling just needed time to think, which was nearly impossible with the twirling cloud of pain that engulfed her. Shawn walked into the light once more and sneered in anticipation of his next action.

The attorney was hurt, but not as badly as her torturer thought. Her survival instincts were in high gear and she remembered that the biggest adversary in the world would go down with a broken knee. When Shawn passed by the side of her chair, Sterling smashed her foot into the side of his knee with all the strength she could muster in her injured leg. It was enough.

Shawn started to go down, but the tall attorney sprang up from the chair and grabbed him from behind. By jerking his right wrist high on his back and positioning her arm under his chin, Sterling was able to hold him in front of her as a shield while choking him just enough to keep him in her control. The two gunmen at Anna's side drew their weapons instantaneously and started firing.

Bullets caught Shawn's body right in the chest, splattering blood and turning Sterling's shield into literal dead weight within seconds. She pushed the lifeless body in the direction of the gunmen as they charged her and managed to knock one down.

Grabbing the chair, she hoisted it over her head and brought it down on the other gunman's head, knocking him out. Anna's screaming voice threatened all kinds of retribution to all parties present.

At that moment, Carlos stepped quietly through the door of the warehouse. He stared at Anna, seeing so much of his friend Gino in her features. Ever the professional though, Carlos was able to detach himself as he had done the day he ended Gino's life out of love for his friend. He was doing the same today. This death was motivated by his love for the friend he had served so faithfully.

Anna recognized him immediately and registered surprise and confusion. The hand that came up holding the gun at eye level brought confusion, but no fear to her face.

"For Gino," were the only words spoken before the tiny blasts of air sounded from the silencer and Anna slumped in her chair.

Carlos knew from experience that she was dead. He exited the building as quietly as he had entered, needing no further assurance. When the first FBI agent located and entered the abandoned warehouse they immediately recognized Anna sitting in a very ladylike pose, staring wide eyed in the direction of Sterling's unconscious body. Except for a small icicle of blood on her temple, Anna looked untouched. Frozen by his discovery, the FBI agent was now joined by two of his colleagues who had needed a moment to catch up. They all stood, mouths agape and looked from the dead woman to Sterling and back again.

The lawyer's hands were empty, yet Anna's had obviously suffered a mortal gunshot wound. The agents stepped forward and looked closely at the cooling corpse. The dead eyes had an eerie effect on all of them and a chill ran up their spines. More people came rushing into the building then and the scream of a siren closed in the distance.

It had only been two days since Sterling arrived home from the hospital. Several cracked ribs, a broken nose, severe trauma to one knee and various lesser injuries were healing nicely. Sally was running the office in her usual efficient manner and Sterling had only to communicate with her secretary by phone periodically to stay abreast of matters regarding returning business.

Samson, who had barely left her through the entire hospital stay, now slept on the sofa in the downstairs den of the new house. The attorney had made some purchases on the phone and there would soon be a bed in the guest room for him to sleep in.

The Boston detective had refused to go home. It had been his responsibility to watch her back and he had let harm come to his friend. Samson was determined that no one would hurt her further. Unconscious for most of three days, his was the face she saw when Sterling's eyes fluttered for the first time.

"I really wasn't sure if I'd wake up dead or not." A weak smile was all that she could manage before drifting off to sleep again. Samson held her hand and wept. He hadn't been too sure either.

Charlie tapped on the door casing before entering her bedroom. Sterling sat propped up in her enormous bed and watched him as he rifled through her mail as he crossed the carpet to deliver it. "Bills, junk mail, bills…"

"You know it's a federal offense to tamper with the U.S. Mail don't you?" She grinned at the private investigator, noting that he still insisted on wearing his shoulder holstered weapon, even in the house.

"It's OK boss. I know a good lawyer if I get into any trouble." A small, square envelope rose to the top of the stack of mail and Charlie studied it closely. He tried not to give anything away with a change in facial expression, but Sterling could tell something was up.

"What have you got? Here, give me that and go make yourself some lunch or something. How can you eat me out of house and home if you're up here underfoot all of the time?" He handed her the stack of envelopes and quietly left.

Sterling realized immediately that the address on the front of the envelope had been written by Samantha. Samson had already told the barrister of Sam's daily visits to the hospital. Although Sterling hadn't been allowed visitors, the realtor refused to stay away and it became routine for Samson to meet her in the downstairs lobby to pass along an update.

Frightened eyes studied the envelope that dangled between her fingers, trying to illogically predict its contents simply by touch. Many scenarios came to mind before the lawyer finally slid her finger under the flap to open it.

"Sterling" it said. She took a deep breath and continued slowly. "I am so relieved that you are home and recovering quickly. Please call me. We need to talk." The message caused a warmth to spread over her as she continued to read. "I tried my best to stop loving you, to no avail." It was signed simply "Sam" and why not, the attorney thought. How could you follow a remark like the one preceding Sam's signature. It said it all.

All kinds of thoughts played through the mind behind blue eyes. So much had happened and so much more unseemly negotiation would be necessary before Sterling could finally put her connections with the Bertilinis behind her for good. Could she make Sam understand that and would she be willing to wait, knowing that Sterling might not be able to make things right and bargain with the underworld to let her live in peace?

"I don't know what you're reading, but could you tear off a corner for me? You look like a kid at Christmas." Samson yawned and stretched a bit. Sterling automatically smiled at her friend.

"It's a note from Sam." The smile of content on her face told the detective all that he needed to know.

"It doesn't surprise me. What are you gonna do about it?" He pointed at the card that now lay on her lap.

"I think I'll do what she asked and call her. Do you think now would be too soon?" She was seriously concerned and suddenly very nervous about the situation.

"I'd say that could work out just fine." He picked up the portable phone, laid it in her lap and turned on his heel. The detective closed the door behind him as he left her alone.

"Hello?" It wasn't enough to determine what frame of mind she might be in, but Sterling recognized Sam's voice.

"Hi. It's Sterling." The barrister heard an intake of breath.

"Thank God you're alright! I'm so glad you called." Sam was suddenly out of things to say.

"I got your note just now. It was a wonderful surprise. Frankly, I wasn't even certain that you would still be speaking to me."

"Don't be ridiculous." The subject was dismissed just that simply. "Samson told me some of what happened. I think he was afraid to tell me everything, but I have a friend with the police department."

"Really? I had no idea. Did you sell him a house?" Sterling was trying to get comfortable enough to talk about things of consequence.

"Actually we went out a few times last year. Turns out that I'm not into uniforms." Sam laughed easily and Sterling's heart melted at the sound.

They talked for ten minutes working the conversation in circle after circle until Sterling finally interrupted the realtor in mid-sentence and made her request.

"I don't suppose you could come over for a little while. I sure would love to see your smiling face." She waited, prepared for disappointment.

"I'll be there in fifteen minutes. Make that twenty, I look like hell." Sam hung up without even saying goodbye. Sterling's heart soared. She yelled so loud in celebration that Samson and Charlie both came charging into the room. Charlie still had a paper napkin tucked into his shirtfront.

"Calm down fellas, I'm just happy and had to holler about it a little. Can you guys give me a quick hand? I've got company coming over in a few minutes." The two men looked at each other and broke into matching grins. Their palms met in a high five salute that brought laughter to the tall woman as she struggled to get out of bed.

"Either of you ever give a woman a shower without looking?" Both turned sheepish and stepped back. A coin toss earned Charlie the dubious privilege of sitting on the closed lid of the commode in case Sterling became dizzy while bathing. She managed nicely and was dressed in clean pajamas and drying her hair at her dressing table when the front doorbell rang.

Grabbing the crutches propped against the wall, the attorney made a mad dash for her bed, wanting to strike an attractive pose before Samantha entered the room. She had just managed to do so when a small hand reached through the door opening and lightly tapped out a request for entry.

"Come on in!" Sterling said too anxiously. Her voice was unpredictable at the moment, so she went with a smile that was brilliant enough to light the face across the room.

Sam greeted the lawyer shyly. For days she had rehearsed this moment, the one when she would once again be looking into the depths of the blue pools that Sterling possessed for eyes. Every speech left her, every thought flew away and she simply went to Sterling's bedside and sat in the chair that was obviously there to serve visitors. Sam picked up the larger hand in hers, without ever breaking eye contact. Sterling drew the joined hands to her lips and placed a gentle kiss on Sam's warm fingers, causing both of them to close their eyes and relish the intensity of the contact for a moment.

"I've missed you." It was Sterling's voice that finally cut the air. "We have a great deal to talk about." She waited.

"Yes, but we don't have to do it all in one visit. Can't you just be quiet and let me get my fill of looking at you first?" Sterling smiled tenderly at her visitor. Sam had many questions. "Is your leg broken? What about that wound, will it scar you permanently?"

The bedridden woman held out her hands to stem the flow of questions. "One issue at a time, please. Yes, it's broken, but not badly. No, the scar will disappear in a few months the doctor says. Its not as bad as it looks, you should have seen the other guys." Sterling hoped Sam would never know the bloody aftermath of her short stay in the warehouse that night.

"I wanted to see the pictures, but Melissa refused. Said she couldn't get access, but I could tell she was lying to spare me." Sterling breathed a sigh of relief and sent Melissa a mental thanks, hoping she would have the opportunity to repeat it in person one day.

"It was nothing that warranted studying, Sam. A scene like that could haunt you all of your life. It only matters that it's over and I survived it. More importantly, you didn't have to suffer at the hands of that crazy bitch."

Sam had an expression of deep hurt on her features. "Oh, I suffered alright, friend. I may have suffered silently, but never think that I was unscathed." A flood of tears swam in Sam's eyes but she fought them back. She had promised herself that she would keep her emotions in check through this visit.

"I didn't mean that you didn't…I just meant…Hell, Sam, I'm not so sure of what I meant or anything else right now except that I am positively aching for you to kiss me."

The blonde closed the distance between them instantly and delivered a chaste brush across Sterling's waiting and astonished lips.

Obviously disappointed at the brevity, the barrister scowled. "That wasn't exactly what I had in mind, but then I am in no position to make demands." She looked resigned to what she knew to be the truth.

"You can make all the demands you want, but there are too many injuries present to the eye. I'm sure there are even more that I can't see and I'm not about to risk hurting any of them. Besides, you said yourself that we have a lot of things to talk about. I'm prepared to give the whole situation some time and see what unravels." Sam squeezed the larger hand that she held and Sterling grimaced, proving the realtor's point for her.

Samantha was still groggy from sleep. Never a morning person, this particular morning was going to be tough as she had been up most of the night. Seated at Sterling's bedside, their quiet conversation had gone on for hours, with only the occasional brief interruption of Samson or Charlie, looking in to see that everything was alright, then moving off down the stairs to the rooms below.

There had been so many things to talk about, so many explanations to hear. Sam wondered now, how much she had cried. Her eyes felt like they belonged to someone else, scratchy and swollen. The toneless words that came from Sterling's mouth were stinging and the crystal gaze that held Sam motionless broke her heart. Samantha would have liked to crawl right into bed alongside the dark beauty who held her heart, but a reluctance born out of the hurt visited on them by circumstance kept Sam still.

The tale was an incredible one, the whole of which Sterling would have to tell over time. Sam could only hear so much of her love's suffering and she would begin again, the torrential tears. Green eyes closed slowly and Sam's thoughts drifted. 'What an amazing woman she is. How very lucky I am to have her.' The realtor found herself circling her fingers over the back of her hand. Sterling had done that through the hours that they sat, picking their way among the emotional land mines of the last few months.

"Where do we go from here? This is somewhat of an unorthodox beginning, don't you think?" It had been Sam's fearful question. She hadn't been sure when she asked it if she really wanted an answer, but the light in Sterling's eyes had helped her to form the words.

"As I see it, we have the rest of our lives to figure that out. I only need a bit more time to negotiate the peace with the remaining crime franchises. Carlos, God love him, has intervened on my behalf and begun the talks for me." Sterling turned her gaze for the first time, and stared past the curtains, into the day beyond them. "Make no mistake, he has done all of this out of love for Gino, not me."

Sam reacted immediately. "I suspect it had a little more to do with you than you think. After all, he could have stayed in retirement, and given lip service to his loyalty for his friend Gino. No one could have questioned that after all those years of service."

"I guess I'll have a chance to ask some questions soon enough. He's meeting me here in a few days. We will travel together to Boston."

Sam's look of alarm came instantaneously.

"He's offered to stand with me when I ask to be released from all ties with the families. His presence will make all of the difference in the world. He is, after all, one of them and I am not."

"I think he must have been a little in love with you himself, Sterling. Have you ever considered that?" It was Samson's voice and both women looked up to see him crossing the room with a tray. "Here's a snack for the two of you. You do realize that it's four in the morning, don't you?" His eyes shone.

"Nuh Uh! Where has the time gone?" Sam looked at her watch and verified this new piece of news. It fell into the miasma of things already swirling inside her overtired brain. "I need to get going and let you rest. After all, you aren't anywhere near recovered yet." She started to rise and Sterling took her hand in a firm grip.

"Please, stay a little longer. It's been so long since I've seen you. I'm half way afraid that if you leave, you'll never come back." Her entreaty was so touching that Sam sank back into her bedside chair without a thought. Samson left the two women as quietly as he had arrived.

They sat for long, quiet minutes, simply looking at each other. Finally, Sterling picked up an apple slice and began to feed it to her guest. Eventually, it evolved that they were feeding each other from the tray that Samson had prepared. No words could have communicated the tenderness between them, anyway as they watched and waited for the appropriate minute to offer the next bite. Shy smiles laced the ceremony of nourishing that they shared until the feeding tapered off leaving only the soft touch of Sterling's fingers against Sam's face.

The bed shifted as Samantha was gently pulled from her chair and seated next to Sterling. "I never thought I'd have the chance again, so forgive me for rushing things." Sterling pulled the warmth of her love to her and held tightly to the reality. The sky had begun to lighten when Sam finally tore herself away from the tender embrace. She placed a light kiss on the lips of the sleeping woman in her arms before she quietly disentangled herself from Sterling and went down the stairs.

Samson was sitting at the kitchen table drinking coffee when she found him. "She's doing OK physically, I can see that, but is she going to be able to straighten this out with …" Sam's voice faded and her face remained a question that she could not put words to.

"The mob. That's who she has to get straight with. The FBI isn't happy, but they're the ones who blew the collar on Anna. It was one of their guys that leaked the sting. Sterling is very lucky to be alive." His face grew pale as he voiced the realization once again.

"Can she do that Samson? Will they let her go, do you think?" Sam had so much fear in her expression that Samson rose and crossed the kitchen to take her in his arms. As soon as her face hit his shoulder, the tears began afresh. Uncontrollable sobs came wave after wave and Samson just stood there, embarrassed at the intimacy of the moment they were sharing, but unwilling to withdraw his support of this woman.

"You know what Samantha? That crazy woman upstairs loves you so much, that I believe she could talk herself out of the devil's grasp if she had to. There is no way she is gonna let you get away now. I almost feel sorry for you." He looked down into Sam's upturned face and smiled warmly at her. Pulling a linen handkerchief from his back pocket, Samson dabbed at the young woman's eyes in a clumsy gesture. Ultimately, he handed the soft cloth to her so that she could dry her own face and he stepped away, turning his back to hide his emotion.

"I can't imagine how all of this has effected you Samson. I know that you love her and that you are a good friend. Being a detective, I'm sure that you had a better grasp of the danger she was in than anyone."

He nodded quietly and finally when he felt more in control he turned to face Sam. "I do love her Samantha and I always have. She deserves to have the kind of love you can give her. I can see it on your face every time you look at her."

Sam blushed slightly and started to speak, but he quieted her with his next remark. "Don't give her a chance to get scared and push you away again. Make her accept what she feels for you, Samantha."

The room was paneled in walnut, its floor of exquisite dark marble was veined with copper looking almost like arteries pumping life to the furnishings that sat upon it. The faces at the conference table were unfamiliar. Sterling thought that might work in her favor. Her stride was off-balance, the pain in her knee rising up, but she had shunned her crutches thinking they might project a weakness she could not afford to exhibit. Opting for a cane instead, the young woman made her way slowly to the table.

Taking the seat offered her, the attorney looked up into the coldest eyes she had ever seen and realized the serious nature of this meeting.

"Carlos has asked us to hear you today Miss Hayes. He is a trusted member of our family and we are willing to accommodate you based on his recommendation." The man at the head of the table waved his permission for her to speak.

Sterling found her voice and began. "Gentlemen, I am a woman in the debt of this man." She indicated Carlos, who sat casually in the chair beside her, his solid presence a great comfort as she spoke.

"My association with the Bertilini family started when I was very young. As most of you know, I made a clean break with them after Gino's death with no wish to create any hardship for his wife and children. My respect for Gino led me to leave the Boston area and start a life elsewhere. The events of three weeks ago, and the months preceding that were none of my doing. Anna Bertilini had some serious psychological problems and I was forced to do her bidding under the threat of death to someone I love very much."

"All of you know, I am sure, what it is to have your loved ones' safety threatened. I experienced that at Gino's side once upon a time." Sterling paused for effect. "It exposed the only moments of weakness I ever witnessed in the man." Carlos nodded his agreement and heads around the table began to bob up and down in agreement as well.

"My loyalty was never questioned by Gino Bertilini. I never gave him cause to and even when his own sons went against him, Gino's belief in me never faltered. He was the only family that I had until now."

Taking a deep breath, Sterling slid her chair back from the table and used it to pull herself up to her full height. She was well aware of the advantage it gave her to be looking down into the eyes of the men at the conference table.

"My part in the sting of the Bertilini's southern operation did not extend beyond that. I made it very clear at the outset that I would not dredge up ancient history and I have kept my word. In fact, no one in this room, or elsewhere for that matter, can name a single incident when I have not been above reproach in conducting my business. I will grant you that I have defended some unsavory positions, but it was done honorably."

"Gentlemen, I ask only that you give me the opportunity to quietly walk away. I promise you on the grave of Gino Bertilini that I will never betray his legacy, or the life I had with him." Sterling looked from one pair of eyes to the next, holding each man's gaze in her own for a few seconds. Unlike jurors, these faces were impossible to read. She was grateful when Carlos indicated his desire to speak and she could sit down again.

Carlos was a man of few words, but his message was powerful. "He was my friend. He trusted this woman above everyone in the world and I do too. I ask you to grant her request in his name." Carlos pulled Sterling's chair out for her when he stood, signaling their dismissal. The left the conference room and went into a sitting area where they were to await a private audience with Anthony Chioda, the chairman of the group. He would deliver the verdict.

The minutes ticked by slowly and Sterling fidgeted in her uncomfortable chair. "Do you think it will be much longer?" She turned to Carlos, who sat, relaxed with his eyes closed, humming softly to himself.

He looked at her. "The decision was made within five minutes, less if there wasn't much discussion. They have other business to take care of before the meeting breaks up and Chioda is free to meet with us."

"Oh." Her eyes were huge. Following her companion's example, Sterling sat back into the soft cushions of the sofa and let her head fall back a little. She'd had little sleep the past two days. Between concern for today's meeting, and spending every possible minute renewing her relationship with Samantha, there had been little time to rest. Now, with her life literally hanging in the balance, the barrister would have never supposed that she could sleep, but she drifted off.

"Wake up Miss Hayes. It's time to speak with Mr. Chioda." The voice was unnaturally soft coming from the hulking figure of Carlos as he leaned down to wake her.

The dark head stirred and her eyelids opened slowly. Looking around, she slowly recognized her surroundings. "I'm so sorry. Please forgive me Carlos. You must think me some kind of imbecile, sleeping when my life hangs in the balance."

He surprised her. Instead of his usual noiseless laugh, his voice burst forth in a belly laugh. When he had composed himself he offered an explanation. "The outcome will be no different whether you twist your handkerchief or sleep soundly, guarded by an old man." He waited for her to stand and they passed through an incredibly large door into a private office.

Once they were seated Chioda wasted no time in coming to the point. "Miss Hayes, there were no men in that room who did not know Gino Bertilini, at least by reputation. Consequently, they are all aware of the type of retribution he was capable of when confronted with disloyalty. His willingness to trust you and release you from his family business is extraordinary but unfortunately his voice has faded with the passage of time."

"Your presence however my friend, is as solid as it ever was." He acknowledged Carlos with a bowed head to show his respect. The business that Chioda headed had been built on the accomplishments of capable men like the one before him. "You must have a great deal of respect and affection for this young woman to come away from your retirement and mingle with the likes of us again." His smile was genuine, but did not effect the look on Carlos' face.

"We have no quarrel with you Miss Hayes. The vote was unanimous, something that rarely happens among us I might add. Go and live your life with no fear of interference from us." Sterling let go the breath she had been holding and Carlos finally looked at her and smiled.

Walking down the hallway to the underground parking garage, Sterling stopped and turned to face the gentle giant beside her. Tall as she was, it required standing painfully on tip-toe to deliver a kiss to the ruddy cheek, which he allowed. A slight blush rose out of the collar of Carlos' white shirt as she linked her arm through his for support and to show her affection for the man. They stepped through a glass door and found the car she had leased waiting for them.

Carlos stepped back after he helped her into the back seat. Sterling looked at him in question. "I'm gonna stay over a day or two, kind of a reunion I guess. Chioda will speak with Gino's remaining sons, but I would like to talk to them as well."

Sterling nodded. "I know you will have a lot of laughs remembering some of the good times." They both knew that the bad and bloody times would not be brought up. "Thank you for giving me my life back. Twice." He returned her smile. "Gino had a very good friend in you, Carlos and so do I. If there is ever anything I can do for you…"

"I know. Call you. I will too, believe me. Have a safe trip." He was gone, just that quick and the car was moving into traffic toward the airport.

A very nervous realtor answered her own office phone. Peter was nonplussed, having been out-drawn in answering the phones all afternoon. He didn't know exactly what was going on, but understood that it was serious enough to warrant his boss' silence on the subject.

"Hilliard Realty," her voice was expectant.

"Hey beautiful." Sam closed her eyes and offered a silent prayer of thanks.

"Where are you? How are you? Are you coming home?" The questions rolled out like marbles.

Laughing, Sterling did her best to answer all of them. Her tone of voice revealed the outcome of the meeting, but Sam wanted to hear it solidly stated. "Everything is OK then? Nobody is gonna jump out of a bush and snub you out are they?"

"That's snuff me out not snub me out, but no. They're happy just to let me be as long as I remain quiet about my sordid past." Sterling frowned, wishing that it had never touched Sam, but knowing that she could never change what was behind her.

"How about having dinner with me. I should be home by six." The lawyer was pretty sure that Sam hadn't made any other plans, but she didn't want to start this relationship off taking anything for granted.

"I'll meet you at the door." Sam was beaming as Peter walked into her office. "Samson will let me in I assume."

"No doubt. I think he likes you better than me anyway. I've never seen him be so gentle and attentive as he is with you. It's kind of strange. I think he's going to stay after all, did I tell you?" Sterling had been trying to get the detective to take early retirement and get the hell out of Boston's inner city. She had discussed setting him up in the investigation business and he had agreed to give it a shot that very morning.

"That's fantastic! I can't believe you talked him into it." Sam was ecstatic. She had liked Samson instinctively from the moment she met him. He was turning into a friend and probably the kind of friend that Sam would have for a lifetime.

"You don't seem to have much faith in my powers of persuasion. I'm hurt, particularly since swaying peoples' decisions happens to be what I do for a living." Sterling pretended to pout, but her heart was bursting with the happiness she felt. There was a chance for her, one final chance to be happy and to have love.

"We're pulling up at the terminal entrance. I've got to scoot if I'm going to make my flight. See you at home." Sterling was about to hit the disconnect button when she heard a faint declaration. "What did you say?" She asked hoping that Samantha would repeat her remark, which she willingly did.

"I said I love you. I didn't say be careful, but I should have. You're already nearly crippled." She laughed in an effort to negate some of the intensity of the moment.

"I love you too." The words shot back, then the line went dead. Sam hung up, the light in her eyes shining brightly enough to light Peter's too.

"You eavesdropping again?" He tried to look contrite, but she laughed at his ineffectual effort.

"I've been your dartboard for so long, I was beginning to wonder if I'd ever see you like this again." He grinned at his dear friend. "I couldn't be happier for you Sam," he said in hushed tones. A beat went by before he added, "Now, when can I see her house? Do you have a key yet?"

Samantha cracked up at his blunt request. It was a very 'Peter' thing to do. She suddenly realized that no, she did not have a key and picked up the phone to make sure Samson could let her in to await Sterling's homecoming.

The doorbell rang in the heart of the house. Sam could barely make out the sound, but could tell at least that it had rung. She waited impatiently for Samson to open the door and leaped into his startled embrace as soon as he had accomplished it.

"Can you believe it? God, I am so excited." Suddenly Sam pulled back and looked into Samson's eyes. "You don't think they'll go back on their word do you?"

The detective laughed and led her through the foyer into Sterling's den. "They wouldn't dare. Besides, she could have caused them grief at any time if she had chosen to. Sterling's not that kind and they know it. If she was that kind, none of this would have ever happened to her."

Samantha would have liked to ask a dozen questions and she knew that Samson would answer them, but she hesitated. Only one had really been eating at her and she heard herself ask it as she sat down into the welcome comfort of Sterling's old leather sofa.

"Anna was in love with her, wasn't she?" The question posed, all the young blonde could do was wait for the answer that she didn't want to hear.

"In my opinion, yes, she was but no one really knows that answer but your lady friend."

Sam smiled at the term. It wasn't a familiar one to her. "I guess she is, isn't she? My lady friend, I mean. I can't wait for dad to meet her. Aunt Jane thinks she's just terrific. Of course, she was a little miffed over that abandonment thing, but I explained it all to her and she's with the program now."

Samson sat and listened to the young woman rattle on, her nervousness obvious to his practiced eye. She congratulated him on his decision to move south and quit the job that had been sucking his soul dry for so many years. Finally at a break in her one-sided conversation, he stood and stretched, announcing his intention to leave the house for the evening to meet Charlie for dinner and drinks.

"Now that we know she's safe from a sneak attack, there's really no reason to maintain the high security. It will be nice to get out," he admitted.

She rose from the sofa and hugged him before he could leave the room, surprising and befuddling him. "I guess I'm gonna have to get used to all of this mushy stuff if I'm going to be living here, huh?"

Green eyes looked up into his knowing dark brown orbs. "Absolutely. I refuse to maintain a distance with people that I love." That remark blew him totally away and he left the room hurriedly.

The blonde realtor checked her watch. 'Five fifteen. Forty-five minutes to kill. I wonder what's in the kitchen.' Sam bent to the task of investigating the refrigerator's contents. She hoped Sterling wouldn't mind her helping herself, but the realtor had been so intent on the outcome of the meeting in Boston that she had forgotten to eat. 'She mentioned dinner, but I don't feel like going out. Maybe I should just cook something. Hmmmm.'

So it was that Sterling found Samantha, in her sock feet, dishrag tucked into the waistband of her dress slacks, blazer dropped over a chair back. Intent on stirring the contents of a bubbling pot, she did not even see the tall figure come into the kitchen and take up a position directly behind her.

"I had no idea you looked so lovely with a dishtowel wrapped around you." Startled, Sam didn't even have time to turn before Sterling placed her hand around the smaller woman's middle and hugged her from behind.

Turning from the stove, Sam wiped her hands on the dishrag in question and smiled warmly at the sight before her. Sterling hung the cane on the counter top to free both of her hands and once again drew Sam against her for a long, long moment. Finally, able to turn loose at least briefly Sterling investigated the contents of the pots on her stove.

"I heard a rumor that you could cook, but you know how gossip is in this town." The cool blue of her eyes reflected Sterling's joy in the simple interaction taking place in her kitchen.

"There are many things that I can do, that you have no first hand knowledge of. We will just have to make a point of going down the list until you are acquainted with all of them." Sam pulled the smiling mouth within reach and feasted on it for several minutes. When the two separated a few inches Sterling had to reach for her cane to help support her.

"You make me dizzy," she admitted causing Samantha to blush, then laugh and return to her task at the stove.

"Dinner will be ready in about fifteen minutes. Why don't you sit down at the table and tell me all about the meeting while I finish it up?" her suggestion was gratefully accepted and the taller woman moved to the nearest chair. There was a familiarity in the scene she was participating in and Sterling liked it.

"There isn't much more to tell than what you already know. The conference room was imposing, the men around the table had on the most expensive clothes, collectively, that I have ever seen in one place, including at fashion shows. The atmosphere was tense. Carlos was wonderful." She shook her head, realizing that if she wasn't careful, she would cry at the memory of his generosity.

Samantha instinctively closed the short distance between them and put her arm around Sterling's shoulder. The lawyer looked up into her gaze and recognized understanding and compassion there. The realtor leaned down so that their eyes were level and continued to stare.

"There has to be some reason that this Carlos person was willing to go to bat for you. You have neglected to say so, but he must hold you in very high esteem." Sam tasted the irresistible lips in front of her briefly, before returning again to her task. "You're very distracting, do you know that." The remark wafted over her shoulder as she searched the cupboards for dinner plates.

"He loved Gino, that's all." Sterling appraised the shapely figure of her chef for the evening. Sam turned and caught her looking, but her smile invited the barrister to look all she wanted.

"And Gino loved you, right?" It wasn't necessary to get an answer. "You've never really admitted that to me. I don't know why you think I couldn't understand him loving you. After all, I do, very much. There is no shame in it Sterling." The blonde crossed her arms over her chest and waited for a reaction.

"He would never say so, but I could feel it. Things turned out all right, that's all that matters. Fate threw you and me together, Sam and the past is finally agreeing to go down quietly."

Dinner was brought to the table and both of the friends welcomed the distraction of eating. There were many levels to their feelings at the moment. Sterling particularly wanted to look forward and said so. Sam pondered the request as she chewed and agreed that there was nothing that warranted saving in their past. "With the possible exception of the evening we spent sharing your art collection." Sam didn't elaborate by mentioning their interrupted love making.

"And the Saturday at Peter's when you let me pour out my soul to you." Sterling smiled in remembrance.

"And of course the afternoon shopping spree with Aunt Jane. You were so funny that day. I never knew you had such a sense of humor until then." Sterling thought only of the stolen kiss they had shared in the downstairs foyer.

"Most of the house hunting was fun," Sterling interjected. They both went back to dining quietly, each lost in her own thoughts, and moving food around on their respective plates.

Sam spoke first, breaking the spell of silence. "Actually, we do have some good history don't we? I just never thought about it until now." Her expression challenged Sterling to deny it as she laid her fork down on the edge of her barely touched plate.

"Yes, we have shared a great deal, to have never shared a great deal." Sterling watched her companion to see if she understood the insinuation. Sam looked at her questioningly. The attorney took Sam's hand and pulled her into her lap. A slight grimace as the blonde came to rest on top of fragile knees reminded them both to be careful of Sterling's injuries.

Sterling reached up with the trembling fingers of her right hand and stroked Sam's cheek. Green eyes closed involuntarily at the tender assault. Before long, warm breath on Sam's collarbone announced Sterling's nearness as their lips met, then parted to allow the gentle exploration of tongues. There was no need to be coy. These two had waited a long while to reach the place where they could let down their guard.

The two women rose, steadfast in their intent and walked wordlessly through the house and up the magnificent staircase to Sterling's inviting bed. They stood together, watching, tasting and touching exposed flesh. Each enjoyed the response of the other as they craved a wider range in which to explore and divested themselves of restrictive clothing. When they were both naked, Samantha pushed Sterling back onto the satin comforter she remembered from her last visit to the barrister's bed. The sensory memory of cold meeting her skin caused her hormones to kick into overdrive and Sam felt herself beginning to lose control. Her kisses became more urgent.

Sterling sensed the escalating desire in her partner and tried to slow things down a bit. "Hey, would you massage my shoulders for a few minutes? I'm so tense and I want this to go well." She gave her partner a pleading look .

"Of course, here let me see…" Sterling rolled onto her stomach and Sam straddled her hips, reining in her passion in order to bring comfort to her love. It was a good plan, for a short while. Within minutes Sterling began to feel the increased pressure of Samantha's crotch against her own ass with each rhythmic stroke of the massage. The obvious wetness that accompanied the contact had the lawyer breathing heavily in no time. She tried to concentrate on the loving fingers that were ministering to the roped muscles in her shoulders, but each time the wet heat returned, she fought to withstand it without reacting.

"That better?" Sam leaned down and whispered her question into an available ear and punctuated it with a damp, but not exactly wet kiss. A groan rose up from the pillow that Sterling's face was smothered in. "Something wrong?" Sam asked, all innocence.

Sterling forgot for a moment that she was still a somewhat injured individual and rolled under Samantha so that she was facing her. She drew the smaller woman into her naked chest and felt the thrill of hardened nipples rubbing against her ribs. Large hands roamed down the curve of Sam's back and found the willing temptation of firm buttocks just waiting to be caressed. Now it was the blonde's turn to vocalize her growing excitement and Sterling reacted by drawing Sam's body closer still.

It took a couple of tries to communicate her intention, since neither woman would let go of the searing kiss long enough, but finally Sterling got Sam to spread her knees. In the moment when her throbbing center contacted the hard thigh between her legs Sam thought she might honestly faint. She grew still, concentrating all her energy on staying in the moment. Finally, reasonably sure that she would not blow apart, the young blonde began to tentatively move her wetness against Sterling, who responded in kind from her place below.

"How long?" came Sterling's whisper and Samantha knew exactly what her question meant. A rush of want swept over the two figures as they strained and pressed against each other, mouths once again meeting and fusing.

It was Sam who finally pulled back enough to let her eyes focus as she memorized the face of the woman she loved. It was painted with the accumulated longing of a lifetime. She had never seen anything more beautiful.

Sterling was trying to swap positions with her but the realtor had no intention of relinquishing the lead, not tonight. With surprising agility and an iron will, Samantha remained where she was and began trailing kisses across her lover's collarbone and down the powerful torso beneath her. Sterling's head rolled slowly from side to side, eyes closed, lost in the sensations that the lips on her skin were causing.

Sam liked the moans and little sighs that rewarded her for her efforts and continued moving downward until she dipped her tongue into the depression of Sterling's navel and felt the lawyer's hips rise up sharply off the bed. "You OK?" Sam asked innocently, looking up into pools of deepening blue.

"Yes, but I need you, I want you." The words were carried by a deep voice that made Samantha's pulse race.

"You want me to do what?" The blonde was pushing her luck, She had fantasized so many times about hearing Sterling's voice begging her for relief and now she took the opportunity to tease a little, making that fantasy a reality.

"Touch me, please," Sterling breathed. Sam retained her position between long legs as she experimented. She ran her thumbs along the vee of tender skin outside the bristling black carpet beneath her chin. Sterling writhed involuntarily as tiny kisses were peppered through her sopping curls. Finally Samantha showed some mercy by snaking her tongue out and letting it flick gently once, then twice at the sensitive skin of her lover's outer lips.

"Unngghh!" Sterling's response was totally intelligible to her tormentor. Sam repeated the action and felt the length of her partner's body stiffen for a moment. Looking up she was being glared at by eyes that were now the color of the night sky. If Sam had been capable of thinking, she would have realized that Sterling was tired of playing. As it was, she continued to lap at the seeping slit before her, drowning in the assault on her senses brought about by taste, smell, sound and sight.

"Ohh! Yesss!" Was the welcomed response when the center of Sterling's universe finally came into contact with Samantha's torturous tongue. The blonde gently sucked the hardened button between her lips and flicked her tongue over it, surprised at her partner's response. The cool, calm and collected Sterling Hayes had vanished leaving a writhing, primal creature.

"My God!!! Please, you're killing me Sam…I'll get you for this!" was the last remark Sterling made before letting her head collapse back into the pillows in total frustration. That's when Samantha realized that she had better cut to the chase, lest Sterling make good on her threat later on.

Working Sterling's thighs over her shoulders, Sam reached around her lover's slender hips and grasped the larger hands that were clutching the bedsheets. The squeeze Sam gave them promised that help was indeed on the way as she began in earnest to find the proper tempo and intensity to trigger Sterling's much needed release. Sterling's hips began to rise from the bed, rhythmically pumping against Samantha's knowing teeth and tongue.

Nothing had ever sounded so beautiful to Samantha's ears as her own name sounded, being shouted over the top of her tousled head. Sterling screamed it over and over as the waves of her release rolled up her body from the place where she and Sam were joined.

Finally, when the lawyer's breathing had quieted some, Sam climbed the listless body to lay beside her lover and hold her close, reveling in the tiny aftershocks that spasmed through Sterling periodically. Sam cupped her hand over the glistening curls and applied gentle pressure there.

"I love you." Sterling could manage nothing more, but hoped that Sam understood how deeply she really felt the sentiment.

"Show me then," Samantha said quietly into Sterling's neck and the attorney seemed to be instantly infused with energy, her hands and mouth everywhere at once. Samantha for her part, held on for dear life, tingling to her very soul with the feel of loving hands seeking to claim and free her all at once. Long fingers worked through her slickness, leaving her gasping for breath.

Grabbing Sterling behind the neck, she pulled the dark head within inches so that she could whisper her request. "Come inside, please." The tall woman increased the pressure of her one armed embrace as she slid long fingers into liquid silk. "Oh yes!" Sterling enjoyed the last intelligible words she would hear from her lover for some time and closed her eyes with the intensity of her joy.

Sterling allowed Sam to set her own pace, gauging by the blonde's response when to increase the depth and speed of her thrusts. Concerned that she would hurt her lover if she allowed things to get too frenzied, Sterling spoke loving nonsense into Sam's ear to keep them grounded. Long before either of them would have wanted it, Samantha jumped from the ledge of wanting into the dark abyss of orgasm. Tearing through her like electric current, release left Sam paralyzed and crying quietly.

"It's just so intense," she was finally able to say into Sterling's breasts where she had lain her head, seeking solace. They held each other, trying to accustom themselves to the texture of belonging. Finally Samantha apologized, or tried to over Sterling's protests for her emotional outburst.

"Never, ever apologize to me for feeling deeply about anything," she told her and Sam responded by kissing the closest part of her partner which happened to be her breast. Before long, one thing had led to two things and the sighs and whispers of her new love drifted down the staircase of Sterling Hayes new home.

It might have been two in the morning, could even have been three but the lighted dial of the clock was hidden by the blonde head against her shoulder. Sterling Hayes had no desire to stir and wake the precious woman who slept within her embrace. Exhaustion had overtaken the pair after hours of discovery and reveling in the feel of being in love. Holding, touching, the intense reaction in her soul from the softness of her partner's sigh, all these things had brought Sterling back into wakefulness. She was afraid to miss even a moment of the bliss that charged through her body.

The dark beauty could not think rationally, nor string together words from her immense vocabulary to express in her own mind, what she was feeling, but she knew that she could never live without this feeling again. Sterling stroked the blonde hair at her fingertips and smiled into the darkness until pink dawn was evident through her bedroom window. Only then did she yield to sleep.

Samantha slept the deep slumber of fulfillment. The dark nights of worry and soul searching she had endured along with the separation from her love were gone from her memory. Even in sleep the corners of her mouth curled slightly.

Blinking slowly Sam allowed the sensuous feel of the warm flesh beneath her fingers to penetrate her consciousness and her smile was enhanced. A careful glance up at the face of her partner confirmed the suspicion that Sterling was still asleep. It was a treat to study her undetected.

'My God, is it possible that she is even more beautiful in this light? I could look at her, honestly just sit and look at this woman for endless hours. The richness of her features, the proud profile of a Greek goddess… I'm gonzo before she ever even opens her eyes and then I am really lost. How can I ever deny her anything? How could anyone?

As if she had read Sam's thoughts, dark lashes fluttered briefly before raising to reveal the blue eyes in question. A brief kiss was offered and accepted soundlessly. Sterling tightened her hold and sank back into the pillows, letting go another in a growing number of contented sighs between them. Sam snuggled closer, or enjoyed the pretense of trying to do what was not possible.

Wrapped in a cocoon of total content the new lovers greeted their first day together.